… call for upward review of Nigeria’s health budget to tackle hepatitis

By Luminous Jannamike

ABUJA – MINISTER of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, Tuesday lamented Nigeria’s high burden of the disease, saying it was sad that while the mortality from tuberculosis and HIV were on the decline, the death from hepatitis was on the rise.

General Yakubu Gowon (Rtd)

This is even as a Former Military Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon (rtd), called on the government to give serious consideration  to an upwards review of the annual budgetary allocation to the health sector. to enable the nation handle its burden of viral hepatitis.

Speaking at an event to mark the 2018 World Hepatitis Day in Abuja, Gowon said

Nigeria can only deal with its health problems only when more funding is made available.

The Former leader, who is the National Goodwill Ambassador for the control of viral hepatitis in Nigeria, also called on the Federal Government to utilised the ongoing Nigeria AIDS indicators and Impact survey to fine-tune the mapping for hepatitis burden in the country.

He said: “To deal with the health problems of the nation, more fund is required. I therefore plead and urge the federal and state governments to seriously give consideration to an upward review to the annual budgetary allocation to the Federal and state Ministries of Health to a bench mark  that can reduce the burden of viral hepatitis and inclusion into the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) to improve the quality and access to medical facilities a cross the country.”

On his part, Adewole noted that while 22 million Nigerians were estimated to be infected with Hepatitis B and roughly four million were infected with Hepatitis C, the cases of Viral hepatitis were more common amongst people between the ages of 21 and 40 years.

The Minister further lamented the low level of knowledge of viral hepatitis among Nigerians even though it is a leading cause of death, adding that most of those affected by the disease were unaware of their status.

He said: “I must say that it is sad that while mortality from tuberculosis and HIV is on the decline, the number of deaths from Viral Hepatitis is on the increase as reported in the WHO Report of 2017.

“According to the same WHO report, 22 million Nigerians are estimated to be infected with Hepatitis B while roughly 4 million are infected with Hepatitis C.

“However, Hepatitis B and C are responsible for 96% of all mortality due to Viral Hepatitis. Nigeria has a prevalence of 11% for Hepatitis B and 2.2% for Hepatitis C respectively (FMOH, 2013).

“The cases of Viral Hepatitis are more common amongst people between the ages of 21 and 40 years. In our clime, the risk factors include local circumcision, local uvelectomy, and scarifications on the body. Other predisposing factors include surgical procedures, deliveries that occur at home and blood transfusion to mention a few.

“Our target is to eliminate Viral Hepatitis by the year 2030 in line with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

“May I inform you that out of the over 300 million people living with Viral Hepatitis globally, 90% of them do not know their status. In Nigeria, the knowledge of Viral Hepatitis remains low even though it is a leading cause of death.

“As a result most Nigerians living with Viral Hepatitis B or C are undiagnosed, increasing the likelihood of transmission to others. It also places the individual at the greater risk of severe, even fatal health complications such as liver cirrhosis and liver cancer (hepatocellular carcinoma).”